


Initiative

by r_lee



Category: Cowboy Bebop
Genre: Gen, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-23
Updated: 2013-12-23
Packaged: 2018-01-05 17:53:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1096811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/r_lee/pseuds/r_lee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Running gangs on the streets of Tharsis City was just the beginning. Getting more would take a little initiative.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Initiative

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Filigranka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Filigranka/gifts).



> A Yuletide treat for you.

Street rats.

They were everywhere in Tharsis, that dark dismal corrupt Syndicate-owned city. It was hard enough to garner a little respect, much less run a street gang, but running a street gang was not only one way to survive but possibly the _best_ way. At fifteen he was tall and his hair bore a shockingly large streak of silver, but he liked it. He told the younger kids who looked to him for protection that the change in his hair color grew with every life he took. Whether or not it was true was irrelevant. What mattered was that they believed him, because people who believed him also believed _in_ him and followed him unquestioningly. If he was ever going to impress his way into the Red Dragons, having people who believed in him was imperative.

The small opportunities and petty crimes did not interest him. What he preferred were the bigger scores. He'd overlook an easy purse-snatching in favor of knocking over the delivery trucks. His gang would as soon loot a department store as a convenience store. He was never the one to cause the first round of trouble. As leader, he liked batting clean-up. Once the mayhem had started and the damage begun, he would swoop in like an oversized vulture and pick the bones for the freshest meat. Only when he was done would his beta dogs lick the place clean, and he liked it that way. He lived up to his nickname.

On a typically rainy Tharsis day, Vicious watched from beneath the awning of a cigar store. Across the way a teen who looked to be about his own age stood leaning against the rough brick of the convenience store, smoking. He wore a leather bomber jacket and ratty blue jeans. His hair was a mess, dripping with water, but the grin on his face said he simply didn't care. Either a new gang was moving into _his_ neighborhood, or a stray cat had found its way into the wrong territory. Vicious pointed across the road with his chin, and rested his hand on one of the twins' shoulders.

"Lin. Go find out what he's doing here." Of the two brothers, Lin was by far more eager and compliant. He was one of Vicious's most valuable assets, obedient to the core and filled with the right amount of hero worship. Without question Lin turned up the collar of his jacket against the rain and trotted across the street, where he picked up a less-than-animated conversation with the stranger. From his somewhat dry vantage point, Vicious watched. The only way to retain his own little corner of Tharsis was to defend it against all newcomers, but the teenager across the way didn't look particularly threatening. Vicious knew, though, how deceptive looks could be. He stood tall, the knife visible in his palm. He liked knives. He liked hearing their _thud_ as they entered human flesh. He liked the way they served as stoppers until they were pulled out of bodies, when fountains of red would begin to flow. If this newcomer had any sense at all, he'd know power when he saw it. Vicious had a name, and on his turf, his name was feared.

Lin nodded twice, glancing back across the street. As he moved back, dodging traffic, the stranger disappeared into the convenience store where the woman who was friends with Mao Yenrai sold cigarettes and adult magazines along with soda and beef jerky. 

"Report."

Lin knew better than to try to take a place under the awning unless he was invited. Pecking orders were established for a reason, and errand-boys didn't rate highly enough to stand next to the one in charge. Vicious appreciated someone who knew his place and so did Lin.

"He's apprenticed to Annie for the summer. There's a family connection. The father is second cousin to Annie's husband."

Vicious's lips curled into a tight smile. He could use that. He could always use a newcomer in a place as lucrative as Annie's, especially considering Annie's ties to Mao Yenrai. If Vicious was the sort to be desperate to impress anyone, Mao would be that person. But he wasn't desperate. He'd make a slow and inevitable rise to the top. He would gain Mao's attention in his own way.

"This newcomer. Does he have a name?"

Lin's face flushed. "I'm sorry, Vicious. I didn't mean to leave out the information. He says he's called Spike."

Because he was feeling generous and because Lin was only twelve, he excused the lapse. "A dog's name. I like it." He nodded Lin over, out of the rain, and gave him fifty Woolongs for his trouble. "Go buy yourself and your brother something to eat." The twins were always half-starved, but hunger was just another way to keep them loyal. Vicious was no fool.

๏

"Annie." He walked in like he owned the place. Annie wasn't easily frightened, but if she hadn't been under Mao's protection she would have had more cause for fear. Instead, her _oh, it's you_ settled into the space between them. He knew if he wanted to impress Mao, this store and its owner and its contents were off-limits, and he respected that for the time being.

"What do you want, Vicious?" She picked up the glass on the counter and took a sip. Annie was never easily flustered, accustomed as she was to dealing with shoplifters and pickpockets and drunks and all the other characters who made their way into her store. Vicious knew that street rats—her term, originally—were only one more hazard of running a business in this part of Tharsis. 

He grinned tightly. "You have a new assistant. I'd like to meet him."

"Spike. Get your ass out here." As he poked his head around the corner, Annie nodded him over. "This is Vicious. Say hello."

"Yo." Spike took up residence against the wall, an unlit mangled cigarette between his lips. Without the bomber jacket he looked to be all skin and bones, but he moved with a casual confidence that spoke of strength. "Who was that kid you sent over to pump me for information?"

Annie snickered into her glass. 

Vicious's grin widened. If there was one thing he admired it was a certain amount of forthcoming, and this Spike seemed to have that in spades. "Lin."

"One of yours?" 

"You could say that." He met Spike's eyes and nodded. "You're new to Tharsis." This wasn't up for discussion; he knew about all the comings and goings. 

Spike mumbled through the cigarette between his lips. "'m frm Alva."

Alva City: another large one. Newer than Tharsis, but still well within Dragons territory. Vicious glanced at Annie but never actually ceded authority to her. That, he knew, was important when establishing oneself. "Spike from Alva. When you're done with work, come join us across the street. I'll introduce you to everyone."

"You got it." He pointed one finger at Vicious, made like he was shooting a gun. "Catch you later."

As Vicious made his way through the door, he overheard their conversation. 

"You be careful with him, Spike. I promised your father I wouldn't let you get into any trouble."

"Annie. Come on. I can take care of myself."

"Listen to your elders. For once."

Vicious smiled. When he returned to his usual place across the street, he sent Lin's brother Shin off to steal supplies for the gang. It wasn't because he had no money. He ordered it because he _could._

๏

"I don't know." Spike shook his head. It only took Vicious a few days to realize the cigarette wasn't habit, it was posturing. Annie didn't allow smoking inside her store, and Spike was too good-natured about it to be resentful. Smoking didn't bother Vicious either way, although it wasn't one of his weaknesses. According to his crew, he didn't have any. 

Spike thought he did, and said as much. "I'll tell you why swords are stupid. They're noticeable. They're awkward. You can see them coming a mile away."

"Like this?" Vicious drew his knife quickly, holding it to Spike's throat.

"That's not a sword." Spike pushed it away, unconcerned. "Try it again when you have a _real_ one." He stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets like he didn't have a care in the world.

Vicious laughed. "I have my eye on one."

"Oh yeah?" They walked down the sidewalk, Lin and Shin at their heels. Although the four of them moved like a well-oiled machine, the twins stayed a few feet behind. Vicious was pleased to see they knew their place and took it unquestioningly. 

"There's a katana at Mankin's Collectibles." Because he had great respect for well-made weaponry, he had yet to unleash his crew on the place but one of these days, if the owner continued to price the katana out of his reach, he would do just that.

"Oh, yeah." This time it wasn't a question. Spike nodded. "The one behind the counter. We should go get it."

"When the time is right." As well as they got along and as much as they'd become friends the past few weeks, Vicious had no intention of giving up even an inch of control. He still ran the neighborhood and would continue to do so.

"Yo. Vicious." Spike's voice lowered. He spat the cigarette into the gutter. "So one of Mao's guys was in the store yesterday when I was stocking shit on the shelves. He was talking to Annie about that place. Said the guys there owed Mao for something and he was gonna have to send in some people to make it right."

Everyone knew that meant there was going to be trouble, just like everyone on the streets knew Annie's stockroom served as a warehouse for goods that found themselves suddenly homeless. There were often items of interest living back there for a time, and it sounded like some of the things from Mankin's would be joining them. Vicious stopped walking and motioned for the twins to disappear, which they did like a pair of magicians. 

He wanted the katana, but he wasn't about to steal it from Mao Yenrai after the fact. "When are they going to trash the place?" 

Spike shrugged. "Tuesday night, I think he said." He turned and looked back down the street. "You know, that _is_ a nice katana. Before that... we could... maybe..."

A smile started on Vicious's face. And here Annie had said _he_ was trouble.

๏

Sleight of hand had never been his forté, but that didn't mean he admired it less in others. Even someone as good at it as Spike would never have been able to swipe the katana, but he most certainly _was_ good enough to palm the Walther PPK and once he had that and acted as a diversion, it was a simple enough matter to simply take what he wanted. He hid the katana inside his long jacket and walked out into the street while Spike stayed behind. 

They met up ten minutes later a few blocks away. Spike was whistling. He held an apple, which he tossed up into the air and caught again. "You get it?" He took a bite out of the apple as if the whole thing had been all in a day's work.

Vicious grinned his answer.

"Yo." Spike spat an apple seed into the gutter. He couldn't have been more casual about the whole thing if he'd tried.

Vicious knew that sort of nonchalance was an admirable trait. Where he was tight and controlled, Spike was loose and unpredictable. He ran this section of Tharsis City's streets; Spike showed absolutely no interest in doing anything of the kind. He was a fixture, but Spike was only in the city on loan. Tonight had proved what Vicious already knew: he had the brains to devise a plan like this and get what he wanted, and Spike had the required dispassion to put himself on the line to achieve an end. While there was most definitely not room at the top for sharing the title of boss, it would be foolish for Vicious not to take advantage of everything he could to cement his status and stature. He pulled out the katana, that beautiful ceremonial sword, and looked at it in the streetlights.

"We make a good team."

Spike smiled, shrugged, and tossed the apple core up into the air. He pretended to shoot it out of the sky.

"Bang."

๏

Vicious watched from his spot under the awning. Mao had been inside Annie's store for some time, which was unusual. Syndicate capos didn't typically spend close to an hour in a convenience store, even when the owner was a friend. He was tempted to send Lin or Shin in, but patience was a virtue and he knew how to bide his time.

What he wasn't expecting was to see Mao leave the store with a smile on his face and his hand on Spike's shoulder. The bodyguards kept a discreet distance and their hands on their guns while Mao and Spike talked and laughed like old friends. Vicious narrowed his eyes, wishing he _had_ sent one of the twins to listen in. People waited for months for an audience with Mao Yenrai. What was Spike up to?

He'd thought they were friends. As Spike and Mao crossed the street, he stood tall. He caught Spike's eye; Spike flashed him a casual smile.

"There he is." He nodded toward Vicious.

Mao Yenrai took a step forward, hand extended. "So you're Vicious. It's good to meet you. Come with us to headquarters, won't you?"

That was not the kind of request one refused. He fell into step, excitement surging through his body. It didn't ebb as he and Spike followed Mao into his limousine, and it didn't ebb once they got out again and rode the elevator to the top floor where Mao kept an office with a tremendous view of Tharsis City. He gestured to his guests to sit, and nodded to Vicious. "Spike tells me I owe you a debt of gratitude. He says the trip to the weapons shop was your idea."

Vicious nodded, heart pounding. It had been Spike's idea, but if credit was going to be given to him, he would take it without question.

Mao went on. "I don't like violence. I know that must seem to be a strange stance for a member of the Red Dragons, but if we can accomplish what we need to do without bloodshed, so much the better." He glanced down at a paper on his desk. "The report came in this morning. Due to your efforts, and to Spike's, we no longer have to put the weapons shop out of business. They've made good on their debt, with apologies."

Spike leaned back in his chair and grinned, but Vicious sat straight and tall. All he'd wanted was the katana, but it looked like their little plan was about to secure him more than that.

"I like someone who takes initiative. The Red Dragons need more people like the two of you. I'd like to invite you both into the family. On preliminary and probationary terms, of course. You'll be trained by some of our best men if you decide to say yes."

Vicious was no fool. There was no such thing as saying no to this type of offer, but even if there was, he wouldn't have taken it. This was exactly what he wanted. 

"So what will it be?" Mao looked from Vicious to Spike, back to Vicious. "You two would work together, of course."

"Yo," Spike said. "Sure."

Vicious's mouth tightened into a smile. "I accept." 

His only regret was that he hadn't been the first to answer.


End file.
